Real Estate Watch

Four transactions reported this week by RealSTATs, totalling just over $15,000. Any of you folks buy anything yet? Me neither, but I'm starting to look. Why should guys from suburban Philly (see second transaction) have all the fun?

7102 Apple Avenue, for $1,675, by sheriff's deed.

7102 Apple Avenue, for $10,800

8522 Dersam St., for $1,743, by sheriff's deed.

7116 Mt. Vernon (no picture available), for $1,506, by sheriff's deed.

Did you notice that the first two transactions are for the same property?

That means that we have three properties listed here, and all three appear to be foreclosures. It would be interesting, and possibly instructive, to know the stories behind those foreclosures.

According to State Rep. Joe Preston (D-East Liberty), the story behind many of the foreclosures in our community can be summed up in four words:

"We don't have wills." By "we," he means black folks in and around Pittsburgh. For some reason, too many of us never get a will done. Do you have a will? Vote in this poll

I spoke with a reader Friday who is living with that reality, trying to figure out what to do concerning the house that she grew up in. It's empty now, but the county's records still say that it belongs to two family members who are both deceased, neither of whom had wills.

She wants to prevent it from becoming a haven for crackheads and God knows who else. She's doing title searches and checking for liens, and wants to gain possession before squatters do.

"When I rode past it it almost killed me," she said. "It's a heartbraking thing to see it go."

I could only recommend consulting with a lawyer, but so far, I'm not optimistic. I asked Rep. Preston once about probate, the legal process for disbursing a person's estate when they die without a will.

I asked him, "How does probate work?" And he answered,

"It doesn't."